Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC Has $173.77 Million Stock Holdings in Waste Management, Inc. $WM

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 15.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 793,346 shares of the business services provider’s stock after buying an additional 104,843 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $173,774,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of WM. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its position in Waste Management by 101.5% in the third quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 133 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the 2nd quarter worth about $40,000. Holos Integrated Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Steigerwald Gordon & Koch Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the 3rd quarter worth about $41,000. 80.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Waste Management Trading Down 1.1%

WM stock opened at $231.18 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $231.38 and a 200-day moving average of $220.65. The company has a market cap of $93.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.50, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.57. Waste Management, Inc. has a twelve month low of $194.11 and a twelve month high of $248.13. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.22.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The business services provider reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $6.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.39 billion. Waste Management had a return on equity of 32.45% and a net margin of 10.74%.Waste Management’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.70 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

Waste Management Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.945 per share. This represents a $3.78 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.6%. This is a positive change from Waste Management’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. Waste Management’s payout ratio is presently 56.42%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

WM has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Waste Management from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Waste Management in a report on Friday, March 13th. They issued a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Barclays decreased their price target on Waste Management from $266.00 to $265.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Waste Management from $236.00 to $252.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Waste Management from $265.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $254.59.

Insider Transactions at Waste Management

In other news, COO John J. Morris sold 7,979 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.07, for a total value of $1,955,413.53. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 98,656 shares in the company, valued at $24,177,625.92. This trade represents a 7.48% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO James C. Fish, Jr. sold 30,390 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $230.36, for a total value of $7,000,640.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 225,793 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $52,013,675.48. This represents a 11.86% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 98,042 shares of company stock valued at $23,039,777. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Waste Management Company Profile

Waste Management, Inc (NYSE: WM) is a leading provider of integrated waste management and environmental services in North America. The company offers end-to-end solutions that span collection, transfer, disposal and recycling, along with landfill operations and related infrastructure. Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Waste Management serves a broad customer base that includes residential, commercial, industrial and municipal clients.

Core services include curbside and commercial waste collection, roll-off and temporary container services, materials recovery and recycling, and engineered landfill disposal.